Chartboost acquires Roostr, everything you need to know about paid UA, and Machine Zone owns the US UA market
Another week passes, and once again it's time to look back at which stories caught the eye of the fine readers of PocketGamer.biz the most.
First, up is Sensor Tower's report on UA spending in Q4 2015, which sees Machine Zone dominating the charts with both Game of War and Mobile Strike.
Next, straight out of last week's White Nights Helsinki 2016, Supercell's Marika Appel talks about how her and one other community manage look after Clash of Clans' 25 million strong community.
Coming in third is the story behind App Store chart-topper Color Switch, a game made in just a week in "codeless" engine BuildBox.
And finally, Torulf Jernström gives a rundown on paid UA, and Chartboost opens up its UA options by acquiring performance advertising network Roostr.
Click through to the list and take a look for yourself.
#5: Chartboost acquires influencer network Roostr to tap into fast-growing social UA opportunity
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Chartboost acquires influencer network Roostr to tap into fast-growing social UA opportunity »With YouTube swiftly becoming the place to go in order to get your game in front of a huge audience, it makes sense for companies to want to jump in and control the scene for a cut of the profits.
So it's no surprise really that mobile monetisation outfit Chartboost has acquired Roostr, a performance advertising network that brings developers into contact with influencers on video channels like YouTube, Twitch, and MobCrush.
The deal means that Chartboost has access to this "non-traditional" UA market, while Roostr gets access to Chartboost's client base and sales team to boost its own presence.
#4: Everything you ever wanted to know about paid UA in 2,000 words
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Everything you ever wanted to know about paid UA in 2,000 words »CEO of Finnish developer Tribleflame, and regular contributor of columns to PG.biz, Torulf Jernström, is becoming something of a regular in the Hot Five.
This time, it's because of his broad, but lengthy, overview of paid user acquisition, that covers everything you could ever want to know about paying for users.
There's parts on "bribing" YouTubers to play your game, working with ad networks to appear in other games and apps, and what countries company's tend to put their money into.
On the latter, he says that the US is favoured by companies as "trends from the US often spread to other markets, and more seldom the other way around."
#3: How solo-developed Color Switch topped the App Store using 'codeless' dev tool Buildbox
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How solo-developed Color Switch topped the App Store using 'codeless' dev tool Buildbox »With a plethora of engines available to developers, some of which require little to no prior programming knowledge to start using, it's never been easier to start making games.
Someone who knows this very well is California-based developer David Reichelt, whose game Color Switch made it to the top of the App Store's free chart in over 100 countries.
The game, made in BuildBox, an engine that offers "codeless" development, was conceptualised in 30 minutes and made in about a week.
It's an impressive turnaround for a top game, though it is worth noting that the game has since been ported to native code to allow for custom features, which will be made available in the next version of BuildBox.
#2: How Marika Appel +1 manages the 25m strong Clash of Clans community
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How Marika Appel +1 manages the 25m strong Clash of Clans community »With an absolutely enormous community, you would expect Supercell's Clash of Clans to have an entire team of community managers to keep them all engaged.
But, as Supercell's Marika Appel revealed in her fireside chat at White Nights Helsinki 2016, that team actually consists of just her and one another person.
She spoke about Clash of Clans' social media presence, noting that while Supercell's own YouTube presence is limited, she works with YouTube channels to promote the game through them instead.
She also offered some advice to anyone who receives negative comments about their game, saying "If you can provide a solution, or good news or bad news, do that immediately."
#1: No competition: Machine Zone owned the US UA battlefield in Q4 2015
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No competition: Machine Zone owned the US UA battlefield in Q4 2015 »If you've never heard of Game of War or Mobile Strike, you probably live in a cave in the middle of a desert, and even then you're still in the minority of cave-dwellers.
So vast is Machine Zone's UA strategy, which once again showed its might throughout Q4 2015 in the US, where ads for both its games dominated ad spaces across the board.
Sensor Tower's report on ad spending throughout Q4 2015 show Mobile Strike and Game of War consistently in the top ten of spenders on platforms including Facebook, AdMob, and even Instagram.